So I know I’m not going to Africa anymore but I did plan to, just about a few months ago. Google wasn’t very helpful, for once, because there simply isn’t enough information for job seekers wanting to relocate to Africa, or people who want to live there, for longer than two weeks in a safari resort!

So we did a hell lot of research about which countries are worth heading to for a good life without effectively striking a match to my wallet. And believe you me, you can do that in Africa, the Africa of rib-stickin’ out infants and giraffes.

Being sort of a safe person, I was also somewhat concerned about the safety of my booty (as Miss United States just said on Miss Congeniality 2) (yea, I multi-task sometimes). As a journalist, if a newspaper wanted me to stake out for a few days in the middle of a war in Sierra Leone, I’d be there – grit, gumption, and notepad. But considering I was also gonna take my bubblegum with me on this trip, I didn’t want to be somewhere I’d be lying flat on the ground half the time.

So keeping my two most important concerns in mind, my bubblegum did some online research and found the perfect two webpages for me – one about the Global Peace Index and the other about Global Cost of Living.

Invaluable information. I do plan to use it, of course, just not in 2010.

Country	COL (Higher the better) (Calcutta - 220)	GPI (Lower the better) (India - 122)
Algeria	118	110
Angola	36	100
Botswana	195	34
Cambodia	272	105
Cameroon	17	95
Congo	139	106
Gabon	58	51
Ghana	115	52
Ethiopia	230	128
Kenya	154	113
Malawi	208	47
Mali	54	96
Morrocoo	166	63
Mozambique	136	53
Namibia	251	65
Rwanda	223	86
Senegal	88	80
Tanzania	172	59
Tunisia	236	44
Uganda	198	103
Zambia	94	58
South Africa	250	123
Swaziland	243	NA
COL	Cost of Living
GPI	Global Peace Index

I did more research than I could accommodate here. I have a very wide spreadsheet full of nifty facts about African countries like the demand for ESL teachers, expected wages (circa 2009), dominant religions, prominent schools etc.. So if you’re looking for anything specific about any of the countries , just get in touch and I’ll get back to you with the info.

Oh, and in case you’re wondering about the Cost of Living in Calcutta (now Kolkata, though I much prefer the former name since its so much easier to pronounce for non-Bongs around the world), here’s a rough guide…

A cold drink – Rs. 10 / $0.20
A bottle of mineral water – Rs. 20 / $0.42
A plate of rice and fish – Rs. 50 / $1.00
A cup of tea – Rs. 10 / $0.20
A plate of good biryani – Rs. 100 / $2
A small hotel room – Rs. 600 / $12.45
A fancy hotel room – Rs 2000 / $41.52
A women’s blouse from a good department store – Rs. 500 / $10.38
A men’s plain t-shirt from a good department store – Rs. 400 / $8.30
A liter of milk – Rs. 15 / $0.31
A pair of nice shoes (women’s) – Rs. 800 / $16.60
A pair of nice shoes (men’s) – Rs. 700 / $14.53

In: Africa | tags: Africa, cost of living, ESL africa, global peace index, life in africa. | #